Ramen: it’s like soup on steroids. Bone Daddies, of course, is a well-established front-runner; its steaming bowls of noodly pork broth are a cornerstone of the unstoppable Asian street food trend. After opening branches in Soho and High Street Ken, and sister restaurants Flesh & Buns in Covent Garden and Shackfuyu in Soho, the BD […]

Two days after Lou, Rosie and I decided that Hoppers was our next target destination, Fay Maschler of The Evening Standard gave it five stars in an uncharacteristically gushing review. Which was maddening, as it doesn’t take reservations and the queues were already a couple of hours long at peak times, even before a glowing endorsement from London’s […]

Hooray for Verden, because the organisational clusterfuck conundrum of the season has already been rather neatly solved. (Well, only if you’re in reach of Clapton. If not, I have another excellent suggestion in WC1 coming next week.)

I made a joke in a blog post recently that invitations to south of the river are, for North Londoners at least, akin to a summons from Mordor. It’s not a very original joke, and, actually, it isn’t really that much of a joke, period. All Londoners are capable of being a bit twattish when […]

We needed to steel ourselves for the tedious task of buying Mike a new suit. My flatmate James 2 had given us strict instructions, but Mike was completely clueless about what he wanted (because he is a man), and so was I (because I am not a man). We ended up at The Black Penny, the newish […]

Until very recently, I thought London’s biggest pizza was made by King’s Pizza of Caledonian Road, which sells its wares – not so much pizzas as great wagonwheels of solid heart disease – at £10 a go. At 18″ across, they offer pretty good value – financially if not nutritionally – although, regrettably, no actual taste. […]

When American food is done well – specifically with high-quality ingredients and by someone who actually understands flavour – it’s a rather magical thing. I’m therefore pleased to report that Joe’s Southern Kitchen Kentish Town is a winner. Winner winner, chicken dinner.